Nurse charged with abuse

Published: Wednesday, December 1, 1993 at 3:15 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, December 1, 1993 at 12:00 a.m.

GAFFNEY - The licensed practical nurse who gave 90-year-old Tula Dobbins medicine Nov. 17 at the Peachtree Centre nursing home has been charged with abusing her patient. Lida S. Bradshaw, 46, of 630 Blacksburg Highway, Blacksburg, was arrested Tuesday and charged with abusing Mrs. Dobbins. The misdemeanor, a General Sessions Court case, is punishable by up to three years in prison. The arrest came after a police investigation of bruises on the neck of Mrs. Dobbins, a resident at the county-owned facility. An investigation into prior abuse cases is being made at Peachtree Centre by the Department of Health and Environmental Control and the Governor's Ombudsman Office, Sheriff Bill Blanton said. Seventh Circuit Solicitor Holman Gossett recommended that Bradshaw be charged after reviewing the results of the Sheriff's Office investigation. The warrant against her states that Bradshaw knowingly and willfully abused Mrs. Dobbins in violation of the Omnibus Adult Protection Act, which became effective Sept. 11. Blanton said the law does not allow him to release the details of the investigation. "We are able by law to share findings with DHEC and such agencies, but we have to be careful. There is a lot the law says we can't say about the investigation." Relatives of Mrs. Bradshaw and Mrs. Dobbins gathered in the parking lot of the county jail Tuesday night after Mrs. Bradshaw was arrested. Robin Earls, a great-granddaughter of Mrs. Dobbins, said, "I can't understand how she had the gall to continue working there and still take care of Grandma. How could she have such a hard heart?" Earls said she hopes Bradshaw gets her nursing license suspended and has to serve time. "She deserves to go to jail for what she did. We gave Grandma to them and said help us take care of her." Earls said her family will keep Mrs. Dobbins at Peachtree Centre "where there are a lot of good people." Katherine Crowder of Forest City, Bradshaw's sister, said she visits their mother, who also is a resident at Peachtree Centre, regularly. Crowder said Bradshaw has "tended to our mother for 11 years. I've never seen her hurt anyone. She's a care-giver. She's trusted." Kay Spencer, Bradshaw's daughter, said her mother has been a nurse for as long as she can remember. "My momma would never do anything like this." Spencer said her mother is undergoing cancer treatments. Magistrate Jim Holland set bond for Bradshaw at $2,000. During a break in the bond hearing when Bradshaw's attorney Bill Winter was called, Bradshaw and Crowder talked about how their mother looked when they saw her yesterday. Crowder told Bradshaw, "We're with you 100 percent, baby." Bradshaw told the court she is the mother of five children and has lived in Blacksburg for 30 years or more. Her husband is a driver for Overnite Transportation Co. She has been employed by nursing placement agencies and has never been charged with a crime, she said. "I've always given the best of care. I don't think I would be employed by different agencies if they thought I ought not work for them. I'm sorry for what happened, but I don't know what happened to Tula Dobbins. I always treated her with the utmost kindness." Bradshaw said she has worked part-time at Peachtree Centre for six months. Winter said Bradshaw is one of two employees in the police investigation who refused to take a polygraph test.

<p> GAFFNEY - The licensed practical nurse who gave 90-year-old Tula Dobbins medicine Nov. 17 at the Peachtree Centre nursing home has been charged with abusing her patient. Lida S. Bradshaw, 46, of 630 Blacksburg Highway, Blacksburg, was arrested Tuesday and charged with abusing Mrs. Dobbins. The misdemeanor, a General Sessions Court case, is punishable by up to three years in prison. The arrest came after a police investigation of bruises on the neck of Mrs. Dobbins, a resident at the county-owned facility. An investigation into prior abuse cases is being made at Peachtree Centre by the Department of Health and Environmental Control and the Governor's Ombudsman Office, Sheriff Bill Blanton said. Seventh Circuit Solicitor Holman Gossett recommended that Bradshaw be charged after reviewing the results of the Sheriff's Office investigation. The warrant against her states that Bradshaw knowingly and willfully abused Mrs. Dobbins in violation of the Omnibus Adult Protection Act, which became effective Sept. 11. Blanton said the law does not allow him to release the details of the investigation. "We are able by law to share findings with DHEC and such agencies, but we have to be careful. There is a lot the law says we can't say about the investigation." Relatives of Mrs. Bradshaw and Mrs. Dobbins gathered in the parking lot of the county jail Tuesday night after Mrs. Bradshaw was arrested. Robin Earls, a great-granddaughter of Mrs. Dobbins, said, "I can't understand how she had the gall to continue working there and still take care of Grandma. How could she have such a hard heart?" Earls said she hopes Bradshaw gets her nursing license suspended and has to serve time. "She deserves to go to jail for what she did. We gave Grandma to them and said help us take care of her." Earls said her family will keep Mrs. Dobbins at Peachtree Centre "where there are a lot of good people." Katherine Crowder of Forest City, Bradshaw's sister, said she visits their mother, who also is a resident at Peachtree Centre, regularly. Crowder said Bradshaw has "tended to our mother for 11 years. I've never seen her hurt anyone. She's a care-giver. She's trusted." Kay Spencer, Bradshaw's daughter, said her mother has been a nurse for as long as she can remember. "My momma would never do anything like this." Spencer said her mother is undergoing cancer treatments. Magistrate Jim Holland set bond for Bradshaw at $2,000. During a break in the bond hearing when Bradshaw's attorney Bill Winter was called, Bradshaw and Crowder talked about how their mother looked when they saw her yesterday. Crowder told Bradshaw, "We're with you 100 percent, baby." Bradshaw told the court she is the mother of five children and has lived in Blacksburg for 30 years or more. Her husband is a driver for Overnite Transportation Co. She has been employed by nursing placement agencies and has never been charged with a crime, she said. "I've always given the best of care. I don't think I would be employed by different agencies if they thought I ought not work for them. I'm sorry for what happened, but I don't know what happened to Tula Dobbins. I always treated her with the utmost kindness." Bradshaw said she has worked part-time at Peachtree Centre for six months. Winter said Bradshaw is one of two employees in the police investigation who refused to take a polygraph test.</p><p>DOBINS.01</p>